Indexing device



March 7, 1933. A PEEL 1,900,073

INDEXING DEVICE Filed Aug. 7, 1950 Fig.1

MVVZWTOR /7. F554.

Patented Mar. 7, 1933 PATENT oFFlcE ARTHUR PEEL, OF LONDON, ENG-LAND INDEXING DEVICE Application filed August 7, 1930, Serial No. 473,669, and in Great Britain November 1, 1929.

, This invention relates to stationery, and has for its object to provide means for operating a visible system of indexing or filing for the'purpose of keeping record cardsrequiringfortuitous alterations or changes in arrangement in a more convenient manner than the usual arrangement of stacking them one behind the other in drawers.

In the system to which the present invention relates, the cards will lie fiat, their lower edges being stepped, for example, a quarter of an inch below the edges of preceding cards, all the cards being hingedly connected to de tachable fasteners in a manner permitting the ready separation of adjacent cards, the cards being also readily detachablev from their hinged holdersl Thus, a system of records may readily be kept in which the headings of each record are all clearly in View, any.

29 required card being readily separable from the rest for the purpose of adding new particulars or otherwise, and additional intermediate cards being readily insertable in the or seriesin the case of an alphabetical arrangement. p

.It is intended that the record cards shall be put up, for example, in fifties, and mounted in a folder tray or drawer wherein any given card may be readily examined by lifting up thecards above it,and any given card may be readily detached as above explained.

The invention is applicable to keeping all kinds of data, for example, police records or r notes, map sectionsfor aeroplanes, patterns of cloth, or samples of paper, as will be readily understood. o i

The invention comprises a device for keeping indexing systems as above, the device in one modification comprising a clip holder and a paper or card holding clip hingedly mounted thereon, the clip holder being constructed in such a manner that a plurality of similarly formed clip holders can readily be secured to each other in a continuous series;v

In a preferred form,'the clip holders are in the form of backings, a backing beingformed with oppositely'facing lugsserving as half hinge straps, adjacent backings being en- 0 gaged together by the edge of one plate abutting one or more lugs on the second plate and being prevented from separation by a wire hinge pin integrally formed at its ends into paper-holding clips; and engaging behind the half hinge straps in the assembled backings as will be hereinafter described. I

The invention further includes a construc tion of wire loop shaped to coact with lugs formed at the top edge ofa card, envelope, folded sheet or the like whereby the paper may be readilyinserted into and withdrawn 0 from the holding. device. V v V The invention will now be morev particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawing in which 7 Fig. 1 is a modified form of backing hav- ,ing lugs to form half hinge straps.

F ig. 2 shows a hinge pin provided with paper-holding clips for use with the backing of Fig. 1. i

Fig. 3 is a plan of Fig. 2. V 0

Fig, 4 shows a plurality of backings and clips assembled together.

Fig. ,5 is an alternative construction to Figs. 1 to 4.

Figure 6 is a broken perspective View showing the folded paper to be used in connection with the construction illustrated in Figures 2 and 3.

Fig. 1. illustrates an embodiment in which the backing 40 comprises ashaped plate of 5, sheet metal'having in the form shown three struck-up lugs 41, 42, 43, designed to serve as half hinge straps, the central lug 41 beingbent downwardly and the lateral lugs 42, 43 being positioned on opposite sides of .33 lug 41 and being directed upwardly. The lower. edge of the plate 40 is cut away to form a central recess 44 having aplane central upper edge designed to engage and position the central lug 41a of a second backing. lVhen so positioned'the lug 41a of the second backing and the lugs 42, 43 of the plate 40will form oppositely directed half hinge straps which can receive a wire such M as thatxindicated in dotted lines at 4 5, the wire serving as a hinge pin for a aper holder and also securing the. two bac ings together. In order to preserve alignment of the assembled backings, the plate is extended 1 downwardly at its sides for agreater dislength of wire.

,trated in Figure 6,-wherein the tance than the height of the lug 41 above the lugs 42, 43, the bottom edge of the plate being recessed at 45, 46 snugly to receive the lugs 42a, 43a of the backing which carries the lug 41a, and recesses 44a, 45a, 46a.

To complete the assembly I provide a hinge pin shaped as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3. This comprises a wire 50 which is cranked to provide two offset portions 51, 52, the cranked lengths of which will engage either the edges of lug 41a or the edges of lugs '42, 43 to prevent transverse movement of the wire when set up. The ends of the wire are shapedtoform squares or rectangles having their outer sides offset, as shown in plan in Figure '3, to receive ears formed on the tops of cards, papers or envelopes by the provision of horizontal slots such as 28, 29. Preferably, the outer vertical lengths of wire 52, 53 are offset'to lie in front of the plane of the wire as clearly shown in Fig. 3, the horizontal lengths 54, 55 being oblique to the plane of the wire adjacent the length 52, 53 so as topass naturally through the slots 28,, 29 of the card without deforming it. Preferably, also the card is creased as illustrated at 29a so that the lower portion will lie flat instead of being liable to stick up owing to the lift produced by the lower The holder here illustrated may be applied to single sheets of paper e. g. 32 cm long'which are folded twice, the slots 28, 29'being produced adjacentthe double fold. This type of folded paper is llluspaper is folded approximately centrally at a and each half is thereafter folded approximately centrally at b and 0, leaving creases, a, b, c. The side edges d, e are then formed with four slots, all of which register when the paper is folded along the creases and which cooperate with the transverse edge of the folded sheet to form ears.

Fig. 4 shows a plurality of such backings and card holding devices assembled as part of a series. It will be realized that the central lugs 41, 41a, &c. may be complete eyes permanently carrying the wire hinge pins if desired,since the backings can be separated by lifting the lateral arms of the wire away from the lateral curved lugs 42, 43. The con struction illustrated, however, is quite effective and cheaper to manufacture and lends itself to easier separation of the parts.

Fig. 5 shows a modification of Figs. 1 to 4, according to which the wire hinge pin is cranked twice only externally of the lugs 42, 43 which thus prevent lateral dislodgment when the wirelies in the position illustrated in the lower lengths. To meet the case when thewire is rocked into the position illustrated in the upper'length, I form a pair of upstanding lugs 60, 61 adjacent the outer edges of thelugs'42, 43 behind which the cranked portionsof. the wire will belocatedwhen they .111- si lilar backing, and further means adapted when :two similar :backings are engaged to cO-Operate to provide means, ito hingedly :mount a papersholding. device.

are clear of the lugs 42, 43 so that lateral dislodgment of the wire is in both cases prevented. The ends of the wire are folded back on themselves as shown to provide loops for holding the ears of cards or envelopes as in the previous modification. In the case of envelopes tohold various data, the loops serve to hold down thefflaps of. envelopes if squared flaps are utilized having slots 28, 29.

In the forms illustrated in Figs. 1 to 5, adjacent backings are urged together by the hinge pins but held from further'approach by the abutment of the lugs with the recesses. This feature,however, is not essential. For example, adjacent backings might be urged apart by the hinge pins if the half hinge straps are set up' in opposite directions .to those shown, the backings being held ;together by small bent lugs ona loweredge engaging in holes-adjacent an upperedge, hook and eye fashion. 7

The form ofthe invention thus includes generally the features .'(1) that after the backings are engaged. together, theyareheld against displacement by hinge pins, and (2) that when thebackings a-reengagedtogether, half hing-e straps co-operate .to hold a hinge pin, since shaped lugs toformhalf hinge straps are moreeasily manufactured than complete eyes.

It will be realized with regard to. the forms illustrated in Figures '1 and 5-thatl provide a backing comprising a plate-like structure having a plurality of lugs 41, .42, 43struck up from one face thereof; that elements, for example, the middle'lu-g of a second hacking 41a and recess 44 andthelaterallug-s 42a and 43a coact to locate orposition adj acentbackings; and that when so located thelu'gs 74:2, 43 of one backing and the lug 41a of a second backingaresubstantially in line forengagement by a hinge pin. It willfurtherbe realized that this construction'requires.that the lower edge of a platebe recessed-so-athat-the vertical distancein Figure 7 between lug-i41 and the edgeof the plate within recess'44 shall be equal to the vertical distances 1 betweenlug 42 and-the edge of theplate at ,45, and lug 43 and the edge-of the plat.e.at46,

these distances being measured inpa-rallel directions. I

It will further be realizedthat inzthe-form shown, the lugs are constructed by stamping tongues fromthe plate structureand shaping these tongues by bending them 011 0501? {the plane of the plate, the tongues in the'form shown being first bent throughaa right-angle and provided with overhanging :ends.

1. :In a paper-filing device,a backinghaw means for detachable engagement .to a

I paper-holding lugs.

2. For use in a paper-holding device, a backing having means to form an abutment whereby two similar assembled backings may be engaged together, and further means whereby when two such backings are assembled they may be held from separation by the hinge pin of a paper-holding device engaging said further means.

3. For use in a paper-holding device, a

backing comprislng a plate-like structure having a half-hinge strap carried by one face thereof and directed in one direction, and a pair of half-hinge straps in the same face directed in the opposite direction.

4. A filing device comprising a plurality of similar backings shaped with elements adapted to locate a pair of similar backings when said elements contact, the backings carrying lugs and being adapted to be held from displacement when so located by hinge pins of devices engaged behind said 5. For use in a paper holding device, a backing comprising a plate-like structure, a plurality of lugs carried by one face thereof, elements of said structure to locate a pair of backings when said elements are in-contact, said lugs being so positioned that when a pair of similar backings are so located a lug of one backing will be substantially in line with a pair of lugs of the other backing for engagement by a hinge pin.

6. A backing as claimed in claim 5, in which said lugs are formed by cutting tongues and shaping them by bending out of the plane of said backing.

7. A backing as claimed in claim 5, in which said lugs are formed by cutting tongues and shaping them by bending them substantially at right angles-to the plane of the backing and forming them with overhanging ends.

8. For use in a paper holding device, a backing comprising a plate-like structure, a pair of lugs carried by a face of said structure adjacent the two side edges thereof respectively, a third lug carried by the same face and arranged centrally thereof, laterally located recesses in an edge of said backing to receive and position the lateral lugs of a second similar backing, and a central cut away recess in the said edge intermediate said lateral recesses, said central recess being deeper than said lateral recesses.

9. For use in a backing formed of a plate of sheet metal, a lug centrally carried by a face of said backing adjacent an upper edge, the opposite edge of said backing being provided with a central recess, a pair of laterally arranged lugs carried by the same face of said backing, said laterally arranged lugs being adjacent the side'edges of the backing and below the cen trally carried lug, the recessed edge of said .plate being so shaped that the distance of paper holding device, a

the central lug above the edge of said plate within said recess is equal to the distances taken in parallel directions of said lateral lugs above the lateral portions of said edge.

10. For use in a paper-holding device, a folded laminar sheet having slots in its side edges adjacent said fold, said slots being in register when said sheet is folded and coacting with a transverse edge of the folded sheet to form holding ears.

11. For use in a paper holding device, a laminar sheet foldable substantially centrally and creased so as to be further foldable substantially centrally of each half portion, the side edges of said sheet being provided with four slots adapted to register when the sheet is folded along said three creases to form ears with an edge of said device as folded for cooperation with a holding device.

12. For use in securing two backings to gether in a paper filing device, a combined securing means and hinge pin comprising a length of wire shaped at its ends to hold ears of a sheet of paper or card and having offset portions intermediate its length, those portions of the wire serving as securing means for the backings being axially in line.

13. A wire hinge pin to hold a card and secure a pair of backings together comprising a length of wire shaped to form loops at its ends, the portions of wire extending inwardly from said loops being axially in line and connected at their inner ends to cranked portions, the remote ends of said cranked portions being connected to portions extending generally toward each other and terminating in reversely cranked portions which are united by a portion axially in line with said axially-aligned portions.

In testimony whereof I affix'my signature.

ARTHUR PEEL. 

